Sheffield Wednesday told to forget Carlos Carvalhal returning - 'no real desire' claim made | OneFootball

A Sheffield Wednesday claim has emerged on Carlos Carvalhal potentially returning to manage at Hillsborough again one day...

Despite being in charge during the Dejphon Chansiri era of the club, Carlos Carvalhal will always be remembered fondly by many at Sheffield Wednesday for restoring belief and excitement during his tenure.

Arriving in 2015, he quickly built a vibrant, attacking side that reached back-to-back Championship play-offs, including a memorable trip to Wembley in 2016. His charismatic touchline presence and connection with supporters helped lift the mood around Hillsborough, while his tactical flexibility often got the best out of a fairly talented squad.

However, football moves quickly. A poor run of form, coupled with growing frustration over inconsistent performances and results, saw momentum drain away at Sheffield Wednesday . By late 2017, the relationship had soured and the football was increasingly stale, and his departure felt inevitable. It was an unfortunate end to what had once promised so much.

That said, Carvalhal sent a message of support for Wednesday and their situation recently. It got us thinking about whether he would perhaps be keen to return at some stage, even if the club is in League One.

The Sheffield Wednesday view of Carlos Carvahal

The question would not just be about whether he is keen to return, given that it appears Carvalhal still has plenty of affection for Sheffield Wednesday, but it also comes down to the fans.

We asked FLW's resident Sheffield Wednesday fan pundit Patrick McKenna if he would ever like to see him return as Owls manager in the future. He said: "In regards to Carlos Carvalhal, I don't think that he ever loved Sheffield Wednesday. A man with so many football clubs in his career, it would be quite hard for him to pin down love for a particular club.

"Although he has stated, bizarrely, a real affection for Swansea [City] in the past, which is quite random. But, no, as a manager with us, his time has been and gone. No manager in many a year at Hillsborough got quite as much money as he did.

"And he couldn't finish the job. A massive opportunity on the pitch was missed with him bottling the play-off semi-final against Huddersfield. Then, after that, his time at Hillsborough kind of just petered out.

"He didn't understand what the Sheffield derby meant and he got caught cold by Chris Wilder. And those two defeats to Sheffield United was kind of the end of his time at Hillsborough.

"Yeah, I have no real desire for him to come back now. If we are going to be appointing new managers, we need a new outlook. We need someone new and we'll have to look away from Carlos Carvalhal.

"It's not like I disliked the guy but I just don't think he loved Sheffield Wednesday. I definitely don't buy that. He just wouldn't be the man we should be looking for if we are moving forward as a club."

The cons of Sheffield Wednesday reappointing Carlos Carvalhal

The idea of Carvalhal returning to Sheffield Wednesday in 2026/27 or beyond has a certain nostalgic pull, especially given the excitement he once brought to Hillsborough. But sentiment alone isn’t a strong enough foundation for a League One rebuild.

At 60, Carvalhal would arrive with vast experience, yet his track record suggests he rarely stays long enough to oversee a full project cycle. Clubs at this level often need patience, structure, and a manager committed to gradual, long-term development.

A club of Wednesday's size and stature should be eyeing a younger appointment who can carry them through to the Championship. Kieran McKenna, though not attainable, is the right idea of what a club in Wednesday's position should do. Ipswich Town reaped the rewards eventually with him in the third tier.

Carvalhal is much more of a journeyman manager than a long-term one. The qualities he has are about immediate reaction and staying for three, four, five years or more are not typically associated with his career path.

There’s also the risk of trying to recreate past success in very different circumstances. League One is a grind and demands patience and resilience more consistently over some short-termist flair.